This is one of the best examples of a ‘Happy Dance’ I’ve ever seen… :- )

These days I find that I am fortunate enough to be THAT happy at various points of the day… And, as I write this I’m realizing that it’s a choice.

It’s pretty much entirely up to me if I have those moments of joy, excitement, even bliss. And, it’s up to me how often they occur.

The same goes for you. If you aren’t as excited as this little pup about your work, your relationships, your life, then it’s up to you to change it.

And, by ‘change it’ I don’t necessarily mean change what you are doing, the relationships you are in or drastically change your life. That’s one option, and may be the best course for you.

The other option is to CHOOSE to be this happy, this excited about what you GET to do, who you GET to do it with and how you GET to spend your life.

What’s one thing, just ONE, you can get this happy about today?

Will you do a little ‘happy dance’ to celebrate – even if you do it in private?

If you aren’t doing a happy dance, at least internally, on a regular basis, it’s time for a shift. If you want some help with that shift, reach out to me – it’s definitely something I’ve helped numerous people experience in both business and in life. You can use the Contact page here.

In the last few weeks I’ve been thinking a lot about making 2015 my best year yet… I suspect you’ve been doing the same. (If not, it’s probably time to start or it’ll be July before you decide to make some changes.)

It seems to me there are a few areas in our lives that we can look at to make sure at the end of the coming year we look back and know we’ve had a better year than the one before. To me, they are:

physical/health

spiritual

relationships/love/family

career/work

finances

For each of us the order we’d put these in is different, and it probably changes from year to year or even month to month. More often than not it changes because of some crisis, so something we weren’t putting that much attention on suddenly pops up to the top and becomes our #1 priority because it HAS to.

There’s a better way to do it, and that’s to pick one goal for each area and begin to break it down into manageable steps, then figure out how they will fit into your life. You also may choose to only focus on one or two of them at a time and then incorporate the others as you begin to make progress on the first few. The bottom line is, if you don’t put attention on it, it won’t change and you won’t be in a better place after another 3, 6 or 12 months.

What would you like to change in the coming year?

Step 1

Write down each of the areas above and then take some time to list 3-5 things you want to improve in each ares.

Step 2

Narrow down each category to just ONE primary goal that you’d love to see achieved this year.

Step 3

Take that goal and break it down into manageable, bite-sized pieces. Figure out how they will fit into your life and start putting them in your calendar. If you make them into actionable steps and then make appointments to fulfill those steps, you’ll make the changes you want and your life will begin to change.

(This last step is pretty hard for most people. If you make it this far, congratulations! If you know it might be a bit challenging to get started or keep things moving forward consider hiring a coach to help you out, or finding an accountability buddy who will ACTUALLY hold you accountable. Sometimes that’s the most valuable aspect of a coach – you put some skin in the game, so you show up for yourself. :- ) )

Sometimes One Thing Gets In The Way

For many, particularly entrepreneurs, one of the most important goals is getting their business profitable enough to create a life and lifestyle that is fulfilling and fun. Sometimes there isn’t enough money coming in so that there is time, energy and mental space to focus on improving in the other areas listed above.

If that describes you, then you may want to check out my Double Your Fees In 30 Days intensive. It’s a 6 week program designed to break you through your blocks to having the income you want in your business NOW – within the next month.

Now, not everyone can make all the changes that quickly, but if you know you are ready and this is something you want to challenge yourself to do, then click here and read further. And, even if you have to take a few baby-steps to create that change – even if it took you, say 90 days, but it happened, wouldn’t that change your life for the better in 2015?

In my early 20s, my boss struck a deal for me to travel with Anthony Robbins’ team to all of his one-day events.

At first, I was in awe of his sheer size. Inspired by his message of personal power. Intrigued by the groupies.

I watched how Tony’s sales teams sold out his events in 3 different cities every six weeks. Created a frenzy. And did back of the room sales.

The guy clearly had the whole money making thing figured out.

In hindsight, what fascinates me most are the different paths Tony and my boss took after their days of working together selling Jim Rohn seminars in the 70s.

Tony wrote books, created info products and held seminars and retreats all over the world. My boss tried to build a business on one product with low margins without the sales volume to make it profitable.

Tony’s “power move” was to pound his chest. My boss’ “power move” was to rob Peter to pay Paul.

Tony earned millions. My boss was lucky to pay his mortgage two months in a row. Or pay me, for that matter.

When I work with clients today, I now realize how much I draw on what I learned from that experience.

There’s a huge divide between intentionally creating a business model that’s true to you, versus struggling and making things harder than they need to be.

And it’s something every entrepreneur gets to choose for himself. Or herself

I’ve done it both ways. And in hindsight, I can unequivocally tell you that getting intentional about what I wanted my business to do for ME and MY life has been the difference between my successes and failures.

If you want the tool that I use to do that, you can grab it here for free:

Carolyn Herfurth has walked on fire, danced on stage at the Sydney Opera House – and before founding The Biztruth nearly 5 years ago – played a hand in the launch of over 100 businesses.

As a business and sales mentor, she’s obsessed with helping small businesses and start-ups like you gain self-trust so that you can do your business – and live your life – your way.

Her ground-breaking Evolve Accelerator, live events and private coaching – supplies women entrepreneurs with the tools to generate immediate income and momentum – and equips you with the know-how to build a long-lasting, sustainable business that is fun and profitable for you.

One of the best ways to get some extra attention when doing your marketing is to tie things to unusual holidays.

Did you know that July is National Ice Cream month and July 20th is National Ice Cream Day?

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of holidays you can use to get creative and promote your products and services. Choosing some unique ones and connecting with your clients and prospects around them can be tons more effective than simply doing the standard holiday card and New Years email.

Social Bookmarking]]>Music as a Powerful Catalysthttp://www.paysoncooper.com/inspirational/music-as-a-powerful-catalyst/
http://www.paysoncooper.com/inspirational/music-as-a-powerful-catalyst/#commentsFri, 13 Jun 2014 15:34:47 +0000http://www.paysoncooper.com/?p=5574Sometimes we all need to shift something going on for us… one of the BEST ways I know how is to listen to music, to sing along and to dance, if that feels right.

Recently, things around here have been a little stressed, and while watching one of my favorite *Guilty Pleasure* TV shows So You Think You Can Dance, one of the auditions used this song. It immediately moved me.

Apparently, I needed it, and I needed to let some emotions out – so I found the song on Youtube, bought it on iTunes and listened to it about 6 times before bed, letting the tears flow.

The words don’t really apply to my life at this moment, but it allowed me to access something that had been bound up, it allowed me to release and I am so thankful for that. Today, I feel like a new person for having that experience.

If you’ve known me for a while, you know I don’t often recommend packages and products by other people, unless I have experienced them myself or know the person making the offer personally and have worked with them in some capacity.

Well, this is one of those times.

For the first time in THREE years John Carlton, arguably one of the best living copy writers, is opening up his Simple Writing System program.

I went the course it the last time he offered it. Frankly, it was powerful, engaging and, most importantly, it impacted my bottom line. Over the years I have earned the money invested back multi-fold using the skills and techniques I learned.

So, if you want to kick-up your marketing skills, start to make more sales and get more clients, and you know that copy is one of the areas where you need some help, please check this out.

Whenever anyone asks me what tools they can use to make more sales, I recommend two or three things, one of the most important of which is getting darn good at writing copy. The value of the skill shouldn’t be underestimated, particularly for the online world, where so much is driven by the written word.

Until now, I haven’t been able to recommend this course because it wasn’t available. Don’t miss this opportunity, it may not come around again for three more years…

Let me know if you decide to do the class – I’d love to hear what you think and be in touch with you as you work through it.

Hugs!

P.S. These links are affiliate links. If you sign up, I’ll get something from John Carlton’s company. I actually don’t even know what, and I don’t care, I’d recommend it without an affiliate link anyway, but if it’s offered, why not, right?

This morning, even before I was awake I could feel panic swelling in my chest. Right now, if I focus on it, even for a minute I can feel it surging in my arms, making my fingers shake.

As I woke up I wondered where it was coming from. I often feel some low-level of worry or guilt, but outright panic is very rare… and to come on even before I was conscious and having thoughts I feel could create it, seems even odder.

There is a concept I’ve come across in various places about being able to pick up on other people thoughts. Tuning into and experiencing a ‘common consciousness’ if you will. I know we all do it… like when you enter a room you can feel the energy of it, when someone’s mood changes over the phone, you can feel it shift, even though you can’t see them.

So, I asked myself if the panic was mine – the answer – no. Maybe a tiny bit, as I definitely have my worries about things, money in particular – it doesn’t seem to matter how much is flowing in my life, there is often a lurking concern over there being enough, more coming in etc.

This panic was definitely about money, but my circumstances haven’t changed much in the last 24 hours – actually, if anything, they seem better. So, what the heck is going on?

Well, I just had a chat with a dear friend, Patty Lennon, and she reminded me that I had a similar panic experience at this same time last year… and she waited to see if I could figure out what it was about. I was clueless.

Finally, she said, “It’s tax day.” Oh, yes. Of course.

People are freaking out about getting their taxes done, paying, if they haven’t, getting ticked off about how much they’ve paid and how little their getting back. All around me people are freaking out about money. If that is the overall ‘collective’ experience, then it seems a likely explanation for why I feel it too, even though I can’t identify a specific reason in my own life.

No wonder panic was rippling through me even before my eyes opened! Now, I know, and next year, when tax day hits, a reminder will pop up in my calendar letting me know that if I experience something similar, it’s not mine and I can choose to let it go.

And, it may help you to notice that when you are suddenly struck with emotion or feeling, and you can’t quite figure out where it is coming from, you may be having a similar experience. Ask yourself if it’s yours, if it’s not, you can choose to release it and let it go.

This came in a fortune cookie the other day and I just couldn’t help but share…

“The man on top of the mountain did not fall there.”

I loved this because it was a reminder that to get to our goals we will need to, at the very least, walk. Most likely uphill part of the time.

If your goals and dreams are big, then your mountain is probably a pretty tall one, so some of your climbing may be a bit steep. But, if you take your time and just put one foot in front of the other, no matter now small of a step, you will move toward the summit. Eventually, you will reach your destination.

And, remember… a walk or climb to the top of the mountain can be absolutely invigorating, refreshing and breathtakingly beautiful. So can your journey. Appreciate where you are, take time to enjoy the view, rest and replenish so that the next part of your journey can be enjoyable too.

Here’s to taking the steps, even if they are baby steps, toward your dreams.

…

Social Bookmarking]]>http://www.paysoncooper.com/inspirational/words-of-wisdom/feed/7Leap And The Net Will Appearhttp://www.paysoncooper.com/inspirational/leap-and-the-net-will-appear/
http://www.paysoncooper.com/inspirational/leap-and-the-net-will-appear/#commentsTue, 18 Feb 2014 18:20:37 +0000http://www.paysoncooper.com/?p=5506

When I left my consulting job some years ago, my mother sent me a card that said, “Leap!… And the net will appear.” I thought I was leaping. It felt super scary, like I was abandoning everything I knew would keep me safe.

Honestly, looking back at it now, I can see it wasn’t much of a leap. More like a stumble off the bottom step because it was an inch shorter than I expected.

I had a big chunk of change in the bank, a roof over my head with many of the expenses covered and the world at my doorstep to explore. Yet, even with all those pieces in place and all my needs met, I was freaked the heck out. And being freaked out, I wasn’t able to really connect to what I wanted… it’s taken me a long time.

In fact, it’s taken me the better part of the last 7+ years to finally come to doing what I truly WANT to be doing. The thing that would have been ‘taking a leap’. Writing a book.

It’s exciting to finally feel truly on purpose. To know that what I’m doing, no matter the outcome, is what I am meant to be doing right now, at this time. All throughout the last 7+ years I’ve been busy, working super hard at times, but all the while it never felt 100% right. While I enjoyed a lot of it, and still do, I have never felt like I was doing the thing I was truly meant to be doing.

Now, I finally am.

So, please, take heart. If you are still searching for your passion, for the thing you are meant to be doing, know that you can and will find it.

Also know, that if you are a bit of a coward, like me, it’s probably there, right in front of your nose, but you may be too scared to see it…

The last day of my job some friends took me out for a few drinks to celebrate. When they asked me what I was going to do I said, “I think I’ll write a book.”

Um, yeah.

I never even started – not one single word. That idea was swept under the rug like little broken pieces of a mother’s favorite vase. It was far too scary to admit to, so I hid it away.

If I’d only listened, paid attention to myself. When I said that, there was a thrill that ran through me. Perhaps it could have led me here a bit sooner…

But, it’s likely that everything happens for a reason. Apparently, I needed to discover some things and do some things before I was really ready to start writing about what matters most to me and is close to my heart.

So, let’s take a few deep breaths, relax and trust the Universe. Know that, like me, you are in the right place at the right time. Everything is unfolding beautifully. Enjoy where you are, relish this moment and know that you can’t help but do what you are meant to do, you simply can’t get it wrong.

Trust. We can take a leap and the net will appear… even if it takes a few years to find the cliff. We are doing it just right.

I’ve been researching smiling for my upcoming book, Walking Maggie, and thought I’d share a tiny bit about what I’ve found here.

When you smile, you change your physiology, which actually changes your body and your mood. Even a fake smile will have a positive impact, but the best kind of smile to impact your well-being is what’s known as a Duchenne smile. (Duchenne de Boulogne, a 19th-century french neuroscientist, identified the muscles in spontaneous smiling, including those around the eyes, in 1862, so that big, happy-faced smile has born his name since.)

What happens when you smile?

Your heart-rate goes down along with your blood pressure. Your body releases stress-fighting neuropeptides as well as the feel-good neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine and endorphins making you feel good. Not too shabby…

To top that off, research has found that you are better looking and more attractive when you smile.

Finally, when you smile – particularly that big, whole-faced grin, it has a ripple effect on those around you, causing others to unconsciously mimic your smile, giving them the same wonderful impact your smile is having on you.